"I feel amazing; I feel really good about what I've done. It takes a while for you to wrap your head around not being as big [anymore]. I still think I won't fit into that airline seat or [I'll] take up too much room. But that will come," she says.

At 5-foot-5, 272 pounds, Owens underwent gastric bypass surgery, a procedure in which part of her stomach was stapled down to create a small
pouch, limiting the amount of food she can eat. A Y-shaped part of the small
intestine was attached to the pouch, which lets food bypass the first part of the small
intestine and a section of the second part. This results in fewer
calories and nutrients taken in altogether. Her stomach, once the size of a football, is now the size of an
egg.

Owens says her decision to undergo weight-loss surgery stemmed
from years of research after countless failed diets and exercise programs. She
felt she had tried everything that was reasonable in an effort to bring her
weight down.